The Canora Cougars senior boys and girls basketball teams each captured first place in conference playoff tournaments held on March 10.
In 2A senior boys playoffs held in Raymore, the Cougars defeated Raymore 75-42 in the semifinal game, which the team into the conference final, said Kim Eiteneier, coach. Canora kept up its high level of play with a 73-46 victory over Wynyard in the final.
After the conference tournaments, only 16 teams were left in the in the provincial playdowns for 2A boys basketball. The Cougar victory qualified the team for a regional tournament in St. Brieux, to be held on March 16-17, when Canora was scheduled to compete against Beauval, Stobart and the host team. St. Brieux was the number one-ranked team in the province, while the Cougars were ranked eighth. Canora’s first game was to be against Beauval, ranked ninth.
Meanwhile, the Canora Cougars senior girls team won the 2A senior girls conference tournament in Kelvington.
The Cougars had little trouble in the semifinal, defeating Hudson Bay by a score of 102-37, said Curtis Baillie, coach. Canora rode the momentum into the final game and defeated Norquay 77-39 for the conference championship.
As one of the 16 remaining teams in the provincial playdowns for 2A girls basketball, the Cougars were to play in and host a regional tournament at Canora Composite School on March 16-17.
Canora went into the tournament ranked fourth in the province, and was scheduled to play the 13th-ranked team from Rocanville in the semifinal. The other two teams were fifth-ranked Foam Lake and 12th- ranked Unity.
